The Flower Shop Boy
by springheeledjack
Summary: Levi lives life tucked away in a flower shop when in walks that one person he has a spark with. only catch? He's already engaged. Now forced to help plan his crushes wedding levi has two options-let Eren have his seemingly perfect marriage and live happily ever after, or try to steal him for his own desires. That is, until he learns that this perfect marriage... Is just a façade
1. Chapter 1

Levi's days never really got any more exciting than finding a bee or wasp mixed in amongst a bunch of roses. If he was really being honest with himself even making the flower garlands for a funeral would liven up his week a little, and that's when you _know_ your job is mind numbingly boring. No, if he was being completely honest with himself he would admit that eating the cake and glaring condescendingly at the people on the dance floor at weddings he prepared flowers for was actually quite fun, but he was also having fun ranting about his life to one of his closest friends, Hanji, so he didn't bother mentioning that.

The shop he worked at was a quaint little place, with soft mint walls and light furnishings. The front was open to an empty street with tables covered in bouquets set up outside in an attempt to entice the small amount of pedestrians who walked past into the shop. It also had the added bonus of letting out some of the overpowering scent that hung around the flowers in the shop like a fog, something Levi was very happy about. He always hoped it would stop the smell of them soaking into his clothes and skin, he didn't need the heavy scent choking him at home as well as at work.

Light filtered in, drenching the flowers in a soft, dewy glow that made the petals and leaves become a vibrant spectrum. The mixture of matte pastel and vigorous, screaming colours was breath taking... Or at least it was until you'd spent months looking at them. Levi had gotten bored of the colours within the first week of working at the flower shop, instead finding that they hurt his eyes the more he looked and even that when he closed his eyes he saw bright spots. He was pretty sure that after enough time the blinding colours would actually blind him. He already had to squint slightly to read any text that came up on TV which was worrying.

He traced his fingers along the stem of a carnation, snapping off any extra leaves before weaving it into a wreath and adding in a few smaller flowers which he had spray painted silver the day before. A woman who was perhaps a little too entangled in the fictional world had decided she wanted her guests to have elfin crowns for her wedding and despite the slightly more unusual order, she was paying well, so Levi had no qualms about making so many. It gave his hands something to do whilst talking to Hanji and they actually looked quite nice. He decided he would make more and lay them on the outside tables for decoration. The silver would catch the light and maybe a few potential customer's eyes...

"Hey, Levi, you have a customer. Do you want me to make those while you serve him?" Hanji grabbed the flowers from Levi's hand before he could tell her he didn't feel like actually being social. Complaining to Hanji was about as much as he could take on Saturday mornings, it was a half day so he just wanted to get home as soon as possible.

With a soft groan of annoyance he shuffled over to the cash register, setting it up briefly before looking up to tend to the customer and was instantly blown away by this tall, tan boy. He had messy locks of dark brown hair, it looked as if it had been brushed and gelled in an attempt to keep it neat only to fail against the persistently mussed locks. A strong jaw contrasted against boyish curvy cheeks and almond shaped, arching eyes. The displays in the shop were reflected in the already brilliant turquoise of his eyes, dappling them with flecks of colour, like the facets of a jewel.

Oh jeez, he's really fucking beautiful.

He smiled slightly and coughed to get the shop boys attention as if Levi hadn't been staring for the past minute or so. Looking up from under eyelashes as dark and long as raven's feathers, he made no comment. Instead waving a bouquet of summer flowers from one of the display's as he addressed Levi.

'These please and if you have the time can you wrap them in some kind of pretty paper? I'd try to wrap them myself but I'd just end up ruining the flowers.' He gave a shrug, handing them over to be scanned and wrapped.

Levi accepted them with a quick nod, making his way to the back of the shop and biting his lips, feeling them reddening under the blunt pressure of his teeth. He selected the most expensive paper they had in stock and cocooned the bouquet in a generous amount of it, even taking the time to curl ribbons and place them around the flowers and a way that complimented them perfectly. He wanted this boy's name and number and he was damned if he let this gorgeous young thing slip away. After checking the bouquet over he looked up, only to see Hanji grinning at him with a worrying glint in her eye.

'Oh shut up Hanji, we had ribbon spare and it was annoying me just sitting on the desk there.' He denied, glowering at her and watching her roll her eyes before getting back to work on the flower crown.

Setting his face back into a neutral expression –though he'd been told it just looked angry anyway- he made his way back to the front desk and his customer.

'Okay, so that'll be ten pounds.'

'But I could've sworn it said almost forty?' he questioned, looking confused.

'You really are way too honest. I damn well know those cost forty but I was feeling nice, I recommend you appreciate it.'

'Thank you! Thank you so much!' he exclaimed, pulling a note from his pocket and placing it into Levi's waiting hand, but instead of just handing over the money he grabbed the employees in both of his and Levi couldn't help but notice how warm they were. His mind wandered as the kid continued speaking, wondering if the rest of his body was this warm.

'I'm really tight for cash right now so this is a huge help, um...Levi?'

The man in question jumped, not expecting his name to come from the younger's mouth, and was pulled quickly from his thoughts. Internally reprimanding himself he questioned,

'How did you-? '

'Your nametag.' He chuckled softy, a warm, genuine sound that managed to make Levis lips twitch upwards.

'Ah yes, I forgot about that. No one usually bothers with it. Is there anything else I can help you with, kid?'

'Eren, my names Eren. And actually there is something else. I'm sorry if it's on too short notice for you but could I ask you to plan the decorations for an event sometime in the next two weeks?' he pulled his hands away from levis to rub his neck, offering an apologetic smile while the older of them got over the embarrassment of finding that they had stayed holding hands throughout most of the conversation. Of course his face didn't betray this other than the faintest of blushes, though that could have been from the heat flowing in from every open door and window.

'I'm sure I could manage two weeks, we're not too busy right now so I'm free a lot'  
Levi raised his brows slightly, hoping Eren would get the hint.

He didn't.

'That's great!' He beamed, unknowingly setting off butterflies in Levi's stomach. 'Are there any more details you need?'

'Phone number. I need your phone number.'

'Okay, for organising right?'

'Of course.' Levi tilted his head, a smirk glinting in his eyes as he watched the brunette quickly note down his full name and number, noting the umlaut above the A.

'German?'

'Yeah I am, but I've lived here forever. My families moving down soon though.'

'That'll be nice then.'

'Yeah' he smiled, a comfortable silence settling over the pair as they met each other's eyes.

'Jesus guys, just kiss already'

Hanji's voice cut through the silence.

Levi whirled, angry at the interruption and hissed through his teeth, 'shut up, shit for brains!' Only to get a reply of a flower crown being thrown in their direction and hysterical laughter when it managed to land directly on his head.

'God, Eren, I am so sorry about... Her...' He trailed off after turning back to his customer, seeing the blush running across his cheeks and right down his beck before disappearing under the collar of his shirt.

'How about we continue planning, yeah?' He received a stiff nod in reply and grabbed an almost full notepad from under the desk that was meant to be used for noting down orders, However Levi found it to be a lot more helpful when used as a doodle pad.

'Okay, what else do you need to know?'

'What the event is, as well as who the event is for, please.'

'Well it's a wedding taking place at the church in St. Christopher's yard and...' He rubbed his neck uncomfortably 'it's going to be my wedding.'

'Oh' only that hollow sound could escape from Levi's lips as he noted down the information. The smirk in his eyes extinguished and the butterflies in his stomach had broken their silken wings and stopped feeling warm. Instead a coolness spread through him. This kid was kind, gorgeous and engaged. Just his luck.

Of course the one guy I have an instant fucking spark with is already getting hitched, he thought bitterly, it's a shame; I rather liked how my name sounded on his tongue.


	2. Colossal Blossoms

Dusk settled outside the little apartment complex. The sun was huge in the sky, swaddled in heavy layers of colour, almost like cloth blankets made of a rich material. The blushing rays that escaped being smothered cast their colours through blossoming spring trees, turning them to a patchwork of stained glass leaves that stretched across the horizon; shattered every now and again by the shadows of houses and the silhouettes of life going on, unaware and uncaring of this daily phenomenon.

Sitting on the wide sill that framed a tiny piece of glass the designers of the place had decided to call a window, Levi watched the lives of strangers unfold below him. It was cramped, but if he curled up he could just about fit his legs in and still be able to call it 'cosy' rather than crushing. He even managed to throw in a few blankets and a pillow to make it slightly warmer in his makeshift window seat, and so the window seat was where he spent most of his evenings. It was always the same: ass going numb as his legs crushed his chest and a sweetened cup of tea burned his feet from where he balanced it between them.

There wasn't enough space anywhere else and when he'd tried leaving it on the floor he always forgot about it and sent it flying whenever he got up which was extremely frustrating when you had _cream _carpets. There was nothing, absolutely nothing quite as bad as stains on carpets. Especially tea stains. They had a habit of looking like puddles of piss that hadn't been cleaned up yet.

It was quite an impressive balancing act Levi preformed to just sit comfortably in his window seat, as well as the tea and his own legs to be careful of, he kept an old book with a thoroughly creased spine splayed open over his leg, keeping his page while he gazed out the window with his forehead pressed against the glass. He had tried this once before he had completely mastered his circus skills- his neighbours still didn't completely believe that the desperate pleas they had heard that night were in the hope of a certain type of stain coming out of a carpet.

Rain fell in torrents, hitting the window like mercury bullets and making Levi jump in surprise, hitting his head against the glass with a less than attractive grunt.

It looked like a sheet across the sky, blocking the sun like a blackout curtain and bringing a new kind of beauty to the sunset. A scene of grey and blue, stormy and brewing and writhing and turning like a heated tango thrown onto ice; steaming up as hot meets cold in a silent battle of the skies.

The air was full to bursting and thick to breathe even with the window closed but this was what he loved, it reminded him of the piss poor weather at a Christmas party he'd been dragged to not too long ago and, as much as he denied it, Christmas was his favourite time of year. It was always a perfect opportunity to get drunken pics of Hanji. Once Erwin had even let them stick googly eyes to his eyebrows to make them look like fat, wriggling caterpillars. Levi knew his friends were weird but that's what made them fit him so well. Their idiocy could compensate for his not so sunny personality.

The fond memory was cut short by a clammy feeling against his skin.

_Damn crappy building job, Fucking leaky window; Penthouse apartment my ass._

There were only three things Levi actually liked about his apartment; one was that it was dirt cheap yet still cleaned up nicely, two was that through the window he could use any moonlight that got through to read from, the final thing was that from its position at the end of the road he could see the entire way down it. At night the view was lit up by the bright lights coming from the houses and shops that ran up each side of the Window as they followed the street, almost like a frame, before getting cut off at a junction. He could even see his little flower shop from here and that made it so much easier to grab lunch or a packet of cigarettes from home if he ran out of them at work.

This also meant that right now he saw a certain bright eyed boy huddling under the flower shop awning, a dull green stretch of plastic sporting a huge sunflower that beamed merrily as it announced the shop as "Colossal Blossoms". God Levi hated that bloody flower. Having to wear its stupid smiling face all day on his apron, getting teased by Hanji for not being as jolly as a fucking flower. They don't even have mouths! How can he smile less than something that biologically shouldn't be able to smile!?

Eren stood almost flat against the shop door, knocking hurriedly whilst trying to keep dry. It was pointless, the rain misted as soon as it hit the ground, turning into a fine spray of water that soaked through clothes and hair and chilled down to the bone. It leeched any and all warmth and even from here Levi could see his ears turning red as the rain sucked heat away as quickly as it was pouring down.

Levi watched for a second, feeling sorry for the kid who resembled a panicking puppy whose owner had left it tied up outside for just a few minutes too long. Flicking the lock on his window, Levi inched it open but soon everything started to get damp. The pages of his book were already crinkling with moisture and the steam from his tea curled into intricate lace twists where the cold air hit the hot currents around the drink. The sugar Levi had mixed in earlier added a sweetened scent to the normally earthy mixture as it rose up around him. Well at least he thought it was the sugar, it could just be that fucking flower smell lingering around.

'Oi, kid! Get your ass over here'

Eren jumped at the voice that seemingly came from above, but before he could even begin to question if he had been called to ascend the golden escalators to heaven, he spotted Levi.

'Oh, hey! I was actually just looking for you, I needed to talk about the plans and also times got changed so-'

'How about you come out of the pissing rain to tell me. You could have just called, my phones linked to the work number'

'I would have but I didn't know the shops number either, I forgot to take a business card.' He smiled bashfully from below, crossing the street and stopping underneath Levi's window.

'But why now? It's a Sunday, the shops always closed on Sundays… you know what forget it for now just get inside. The number's 104 just press the buzzer and pull the door. I trust you're not some kind of axe murderer or some shit like that?'

Why was he doing this? This brat was an almost complete stranger, an attractive stranger, yes, but still a stranger. On top of that he was already engaged but… he felt drawn to the kid. He had a feeling that even if they could never be together in _that_ kind of way, they could be good friends. He just seemed like the kind of person who would be devoted and loyal and the kind of friend that would drive you home when you got a bit too drunk and cooked for you and would wipe the sleep from your eyes for you in the morning and maybe the line between friends and boyfriends was getting a little weird and confused inside Levis head but it was understandable, right? He was trying to use logic to battle away a small crush that had developed far too quickly for his liking because there just _had_ to be logic involved somewhere. Otherwise it was just plain unfair.

'I'm fairly certain I'm not, number 104 right?''

Despite the kids uncertainty the buzzer rung as loud and annoyingly as ever and Levi cleared his head and got up to let him in, giving his apartment a quick glance to check it was clean enough for visitors, not that he could do much now anyway, but he had always been a neat freak and a closet hoarder of cleaning items. A fact that never failed to entertain Hanji, especially when it ended in Levi actually keeping the studded feather duster from a French maid set she and Erwin had gotten him for his birthday_. Ha ha because you're French and always cleaning! Isn't it funny?_ Hanji was a little… erratic. Or maybe the best way to describe his best friend would be just really fucking weird. Either worked.

'So, Levi, is it normal for you to invite customers into your house?' Eren asked almost as soon as the door had opened.

Levi went to close it in his face, but the kid managed to slip in, already shrugging off his coat as if he were at home.

'Harsh.'

'What did you need to tell me?' Levi questioned, giving him a slight glare but it was easy to see the lack of real anger behind it.

Taking Eren's coat he hung it up and continued, 'Plus, as an employee it's my job to make sure the customers are fully satisfied.'

'If you want to "fully satisfy" me' yes the dork even air quoted with his fingers, 'then could you get me some tea?'

'You cheeky little shit.'

'It's what you said! I'm only using it to my advantage like a smart person.'

'A smart person? That's the best you can do?'

'…'

Levi smirked at his meagre victory, and left the kid standing in the doorway whilst he went to make some tea _purely_ because he wanted tea too. It was completely his own decision to have tea, a decision that was separate from Eren's request _completely._

'Do you take sugar?'

'Half please' Levi wrinkled his nose slightly, he couldn't stand most drinks unsweetened but only stirred a half in, making sure to put extra in his own.

After pouring a generous amount of milk in both, he brought them over to the small coffee table in the centre of the room, and sat on the floor with his legs crossed under it. He found it amusing to see that Eren hadn't sat down yet either, instead he was hovering between the entrance and living room looking confused and perhaps a tad uncomfortable.

'What do you want kid? Sit down.'

'Do you want me to sit on the floor or on the sofa or what?'

'Are you kidding me? The reason I'm getting a aching ass right now is so you could sit on the sofa- or would _you_ prefer an aching ass?' he regretted his word choice when he saw a slight blush stain Eren's cheeks.

'You know what I think I'll take the sofa… but you do know there's generally enough room for two people on sofas, right?'

'Yeah but I don't really fancy getting all close to a guy I just invited in off the streets.' He really did fancy it, but it probably wouldn't help him get over his stupid crush, 'plus, you're soaking.' that was a better excuse.

'Ah, sorry about that. If I had known the shop was clos-' He stopped; face contorted in an almost pained expression.

'…Eren? Are you okay?'

'Holy fucking shit that's way too sweet!'

Oh. And here he was getting all worried about the brat.

'I only put half a sugar in just like you said. Don't even try to blame me, idiot.' he realised his mistake as soon as he took a sip of his own, surprisingly bitter cup of tea. He'd accidentally swapped the drinks.

'Oh now that's just gross.'

'Serves you right!' Eren's expression had changed easily from one of disgust to an open smile and a hint of amber had entered his implacably coloured eyes. He looked sweet and adorable and Levi just… kind of… froze.

On second thoughts maybe he could do with something bitter right about now.

'Okay so the date of the wedding's been pushed back. If you don't mind me asking, why is that?' Levi noted it down quickly in a small notepad. It was easier to keep track of things this way.

'They need to all come over from Germany and hopefully after they come from the wedding my family'll have a place to move into.'

'So your families moving into Britain after the wedding?'

So it's quite probable that Eren's fiancé was in a whole different country... what she didn't know wouldn't hurt her and he doubted she'd find out if Levi maybe made a move on her guy…

'Yeah, so it might take a while for everything to be sorted out and final so I hope it isn't too much to ask for you to be fluid with timings and everything.'

'It's fine, but just remember flowers only live a few days at their peak and if it turns out timings have changed and the flowers die then I'm making you pay for them.'

'Sounds fair enough. So thank you so much for your help and, Levi?'

'Mm?'

'As an extra thank you I'm inviting you to the stag do… whenever and wherever it may be.'

'…I'd like that, thanks.' Levi was actually touched by the kid's invitation. People normally didn't bother with anything like this, it was just exchange money- forget the shop ever existed.

'Awesome, it's getting late so I should probably be getting back home. I'm lodging with a friend right now and he gets worried easily so we'll go over other plans and stuff soon?'

'Yeah but not at the shop, I'm allowed out of there to discuss things with clients and I need to get out and about sometime or I'm gonna go mad.' He was stretching the truth a little, but Levi was sure Hanji would cover him.

'So where did you have in mind?' Eren stood up, rolling his shoulders and looking around for his coat.

'It's hung up in the entrance hall and I was thinking a café?'

'Somewhere they won't switch up our orders, it sounds great.' He smirked slightly, waiting for Levi to stand up too.

'Yeah, yeah don't push your luck, kid.' Levi got up with, as he would describe it, all the grace of a falling turd. His knees complained at him in the form of several loud cracks.

'…are you okay?'

'I am but my knees really aren't'

'Jesus Christ, Levi you should get that checked out. A youngish guy like you shouldn't make noises like that'

'Ish?'

'Well yeah?'

'I'm only thirty four!'

'Oh. That's actually older than I thought'

'…get out of my house you little shit.'

'Now see when you say little I'm actually talle-'

'Finish that sentence and I will throw you out of the fucking window.'

Eren just nodded, looking slightly alarmed but still smug as he went to grab his coat and Levi followed to let him out.

'So when you get the bottom floor push the door whilst holding down the button. You have to do both at the same time or it won't let you out.'

'Thanks Levi. Remember to let me know what day and timings for the meet up and stuff.'

'Tomorrow at about three at café Maria? It's getting knocked down soon so I want to go there while I can'

'It's a date'

Eren said it in a purely innocent way but the smile Levi's lips curled into certainly wasn't.

'Yeah, a date. Have a safe trip, Eren'

'You too'

'…'

'Wait, shit I fucked up, I fucked up!'

'Just go home now, kid'

'I think that's a really good idea.'


End file.
